Daughter Saves Mother From Attempted Rapist In Santa Ana

SANTA ANA (CBSLA.com) — A Santa Ana woman chased after a man who allegedly tried to rape her mother on Sunday.

The attack happened at 5:30 p.m. in the driveway of the victim’s home in the 1100 block of West 17th Street.

Police said the older woman was getting out of her car when the suspect approached her, punched her in the face and shoved her back into the vehicle. He then ripped her clothes and attempted to sexually assault her.

The victim’s daughter, who asked to remain unidentified, told CBS2’s Stacey Butler that she ran outside when she heard her mother scream and frantically honk the car’s horn.

“You could hear it in her voice that something was wrong,” she said. “I turned and saw the guy that she was pointing to and took off running after him.”

(credit: Santa Ana Police Department)

The daughter chased the suspect through the neighborhood and managed to trip him two times.

“He fell, rolled, got back up, and kept running,” she said.

The assailant, however, managed to get away.

“To know that I could have had him…if I could have run a little bit farther…I probably would have (caught him). But he’s still out there. And him being out there is what’s torturing my mom,” she said.

The woman’s daughter hopes her harrowing story will help someone find the suspect.

“(My mom) can’t even walk outside at night. She doesn’t want to walk outside at night ‘cause she’s scared this person is gonna come back,” she said. “I want him to be caught. And I don’t want this to happen to anybody else’s mom again.”

Police described the suspect as Hispanic, between 15 to 20 years old, 5 feet 5 inches to 5 feet 7 inches tall, with a thin build and light facial acne. He had a long black unkempt ponytail.

The reported attacker was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and black skinny jeans.